I think I may be done with DDO....At least for a while.

[FranOhmsford]

I can't bring myself to play anymore.....I'll still check the forums regularly but I need to take a break from the game.

It's simply become too grindy for me....My characters can never be "complete" now {they probably wouldn't ever have made it anyway but at least there was an end in sight - Not any more.}.

[Ryan220]

I can't bring myself to play anymore.....I'll still check the forums regularly but I need to take a break from the game.

It's simply become too grindy for me....My characters can never be "complete" now {they probably wouldn't ever have made it anyway but at least there was an end in sight - Not any more.}.

You don’t need a tonne of PLs to run content.

I have a DC Warlock (based around Slardens build) with only a few Reaper points and just a couple of Heroic PLs, that is geared with purely Ravenloft items (no raid gear). I can’t insta everything, but my Enchant DC is OK and my Tents hold. I struggle to solo some content on him but he works fine in a group.

Admittedly he feels weak compared to my main as he lacks the PLs, PRR, HP, saves, DCs etc that my main has, but it works as long as I play smart and keep my weaknesses in mind.
He can meaningfully contribute in a group and I can have fun which is what its all about.

I have given up on ever becoming "triple" everything and Rxp capped, but it's not going to stop me playing.

Don’t give up.

[silinteresting]

I can't bring myself to play anymore.....I'll still check the forums regularly but I need to take a break from the game.

It's simply become too grindy for me....My characters can never be "complete" now {they probably wouldn't ever have made it anyway but at least there was an end in sight - Not any more.}.

goodbye, au revior, so long, fairwell, adios etc etc.

your friend sil

[Saekee]

Fran, I am sorry to learn this. I have enjoyed your presence here greatly but it will no doubt be a relief for you to move on.

The game is very grindy but at the same time there have been changes that have favored focused developments. For example, it is far more powerful to have an assassin with an MP-loaded sentient dagger than being a completionist etc. Yes, one can argue that having it all makes one’s toon superpowered, but that is not my goal.

Have you considered trying a stealth class and the ROGUE Quatre trials before retiring? It is a game within the game.

[Saekee]

btw when I saw you doing a video series on heroic leveling, I thought, “not a good sign—those projects get tedious & make the game onerous for the videomaker”

[blerkington]

I can't bring myself to play anymore.....I'll still check the forums regularly but I need to take a break from the game.

It's simply become too grindy for me....My characters can never be "complete" now {they probably wouldn't ever have made it anyway but at least there was an end in sight - Not any more.}.

The goal of completing your characters may seem out of reach, but I think a far more valuable and enjoyable goal is to improve as a player. You don't need every past life feat to be effective in difficult content, and it is depressing seeing people who have been playing heavily for years, with a ton of past lives or not, that can't play their way out of a wet paper bag.

That's not meant as a sledge of you in any way. Improving is something that all of us can do, and when you start watching people who are really good at DDO you learn a great deal. It really opens up a whole new perspective on the game. I'm lucky enough to run with some of Khyber's best and looking at how they approach the game taught me an immense amount and still is. And the more you learn, the more you realise how much more on top of what you know there is to learn.

Regarding your situation in particular, I think you've really made a rod for your own back by spreading yourself so thin over so many characters. I've suggested this to you before, apparently without success, but here it is again: pick a character that you like and then work hard on gearing it up and discovering how to play it really effectively.

That will change your view of the game completely and will give you a sense of progress rather than stagnation or falling behind, and it will also equip you to be more effective if you decide later on to go back and work on some alts. Just to be clear, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with running alts, but it can be overwhelming if you don't understand the game well and know how to work it efficiently.

And if it really is true that out of choice you play resting on your stomach rather than sitting up, stop doing that. Stop it right now.

Thanks.

[Enoach]

Sorry to hear you have reached this point.

I personally approached this game in 2006 as a Journey and feel that is what has help me avoid the feel of "a grind".

To the point of "Complete a Character", sure there is a way to "Complete" a character for "some period of time". However, the fact that changes still occur in DDO making it a "living" game means that eventually you will have to do more effort towards "complete" at some point . That is why I do this for the Journey.

[Kylstrem]

Fran, buy a 1st person shooting game and practice circle-strafing with only mouse-keyboard then come back to DDO.

[FranOhmsford]

btw when I saw you doing a video series on heroic leveling, I thought, “not a good sign—those projects get tedious & make the game onerous for the videomaker”

I am going to try to complete that series but it's likely the only gameplay I'll be doing for the foreseeable future and it will take a while.

As for the Guild Threads - I'll be checking the forums for personal messages and replies to those threads so I can keep them updated for those who want me to.

[Hostyle]

I can't bring myself to play anymore.....I'll still check the forums regularly but I need to take a break from the game.

It's simply become too grindy for me....My characters can never be "complete" now {they probably wouldn't ever have made it anyway but at least there was an end in sight - Not any more.}.

See you when you get back mate -)

[HungarianRhapsody]

I can't bring myself to play anymore.....I'll still check the forums regularly but I need to take a break from the game.

The forums are the real PvP section of DDO.

[Annex]

Some people look at a mountain and feel strongly compelled to ascend to the top. Some people see a mountain and want to endlessly circle the base, exploring every valley and ridge, every tree and brook. If you are the former type of person and want to reach the top but never can, starting up that path will only make you crazy.

Fran, you are one of my very favorite people here and I am sorry to see you go, but sometimes one needs to take the left fork instead of the right and move onto a different path to find happiness. I truly hope you find a happy path for yourself.

For what it is worth, I reached the same point back in November and took up sculpting. I have only stepped into a dungeon to level one evening in the last 30+. Sculpting has not brought me happiness but it does not fill me with the despair I feel when I look at the mountain called DDO.

[Livmo]

I can't bring myself to play anymore.....I'll still check the forums regularly but I need to take a break from the game.

It's simply become too grindy for me....My characters can never be "complete" now {they probably wouldn't ever have made it anyway but at least there was an end in sight - Not any more.}.

Take a break. Often times you'll find when you come back from a break your game play will be crisper.

Lots of good advice in this thread.

When you get back from break, focus on fun.

[Ponytail]

I can't bring myself to play anymore.....I'll still check the forums regularly but I need to take a break from the game.

It's simply become too grindy for me....My characters can never be "complete" now {they probably wouldn't ever have made it anyway but at least there was an end in sight - Not any more.}.

I've been playing off and on since launch. I've found it helpful to listen to my feelings, if I feel like taking a break then I do. I generally come back and find the game has generally improved each time I come back.

Also, when I am playing and if I TR, I try and do different dungeons than I did last time I leveled the character (at least after harbor/marketplace). This helps to avoid the game feeling super-grindy right away. I also try and avoid repeatedly running the same dungeon over and over again. There seems to be enough dungeons, wilderness areas and challenges to level without having to repeat. It's not the fastest, but it definitely keeps me from screaming, not again, not again! hehe